Constellations
by TeamAelin
Summary: Just a short one shot about one of the ACOMAF spoilers - I can't wait until May!
I stared at the filigreed ceiling from where I lay sprawled out on the ridiculously grandiose bed. Exhaustion coated my bones but I knew that there was no point in surrendering to sleep, not when _they_ still haunted my dreams. I had awoken a few hours before, gasping in terror and drenched in sweat that felt horrifically like faerie blood as I jolted upright. It had taken a few minutes for me to calm my thundering heart and slow my jagged breathing but the faces behind my eyes refused to fade. The fact that I was alone in my rooms at the Night Court did little to soothe me; while Tamlin never awoke when I did in the middle of the night, his presence was reassuring and solid. A reminder of what I had sacrificed my soul for.

I exhaled sharply, the silken sheets I had smothered myself with suddenly suffocating. I staggered from the bed and stood, shivering in my nightgown despite the warm room. I ran a shaking hand through my hair as I contemplated what to do next. Wandering the shadowed hallways was an impossibility as I was bound to be spotted by a servant or courtier which would lead to difficult questions and raised brows. My strong new eyes flitted around the room – I needed to get out – before settling on the window. So be it.

I managed to open the window without shattering it, a considerable achievement given the number of doors I had shattered in my first few weeks as a High Fae. Slipping onto the ledge, I eased the window shut behind me and turned to survey my surroundings. Despite lacking the familiarity and light of Spring, the Night Court had a lethal beauty which took my breath away each time I saw it. Especially awing was the ebony sky adorned with the luminescence of infinite stars. In this land, the stars were never hidden by the garish sun but allowed to gaze permanently upon the Earth, their soft light both a refuge and a revelation for those below.

I turned and scaled the stony wall so that I might find somewhere secure to rest. My senses honed to an infinite degree, I could easily find crevices for my hands and feet. I felt sure and balanced in my Fae body even as my human heart destroyed me slowly with each damming beat. I shook my head to clear those thoughts before gracefully pulling myself onto the roof. To my shock, I was not alone.

I easily identified Rhysand from the membranous wings tucked neatly behind his back as he sat facing away from me. Despite my near silent movements until now, I knew better than to assume that I had escaped the notice of the High Lord.

"Feyre," he greeted me, cool and collected, without bothering to turn. I would have thought nothing of his blasé attitude had I not detected the faintest trace of surprise through the tattoo on my arm. I did not reply but instead sat a few metres away from him on the roof, studying the stars as he did. We enjoyed a companionable silence while I contemplated what had brought him to escape his own rooms. Having been enslaved to Amarantha for only a few months, I could hardly imagine what forty nine years' worth of memories of enslavement to her would feel like.

I was interrupted from my musing when I sensed Rhysand's violet eyes on me. I turned my head and was momentarily stunned by their depth and colour – something I would paint, perhaps, if I could ever bring myself to paint again. A smirk played along the edges of his sensuous lips as I realised I had been staring and I turned my head quickly. His smirk became a full blown grin and a flush of traitorous heat made its way to my face. Mercifully, he averted his gaze but still grinned wickedly.

I searched out the few familiar constellations I had learned during the many nights I spent in the forest as a distraction from my mortification. I had made it a point to learn some as they could help me to orientate but also – as I rarely admitted - because they were a thing of beauty in my bleak and survival focused existence, because tracing those familiar outlines brought me a few moments of calm. I traced the tail of the Northern Wolf to the horizon and turned my head to follow the sweep of the Dragon's wing but was surprised to see that Rhysand's gaze followed my own. He turned again to me and I felt his curiosity tugging at our bond.

"Who knew that an illiterate human would have bothered to learn the constellations?" he drawled, an ebony brow arched. I scowled at him, despite his teasing tone, eliciting a low chuckle that reverberated along my bones. His eyes remained light with humour as he suddenly appeared behind me and wrapped his muscular arms around mine. I gasped in surprise, all too aware of my thin nightgown, but this time he did not laugh.

"There," he murmured in a midnight caress as he raised our arms to the sky – pointing. "The panther – the symbol of Night."

I gazed ahead, at first seeing only a random array of stars but suddenly an image emerged. I glimpsed the curve of a tail, the flattened paws and a head tipped back to roar at the sky. My eyes devoured the contrast of light and darkness, the rugged beauty of the animal and its fierce expression – a work of art that predated the world itself.

Before I could reconsider, I grasped Rhysand's wrist and pointed him towards the southern sky. I could remember my mother teaching me this one; remember the light in her eyes as she told me the story.

"The huntress," I said, my voice quiet but not gentle. I traced the outline of her bow, her sure, steady stance and grinned. "She stalks the moon." I traced the arc that her arrow would take up until I found just that, full and bright.

Rhys didn't reply and I turned to find him staring at me with ambivalence; humour, disbelief and - awe? – in his eyes. I stared right back and his lips pulled up into a smile, somehow more genuine than before. He flopped back onto the roof and pulled me on top of him as I landed with an undignified _oomph._ I scowled again in indignation and made to roll off when a movement caught my attention. Bright lights arced through the night sky, leaving blazing trails in their wake. I blinked like an idiot, transfixed at the beauty before me.

I felt warm arms pulling me against a muscular body and Rhys' lips were suddenly at my ear. I shivered, but this time it was nothing to do with the cold. Nevertheless, his wings wrapped around us in a soft cocoon, shielding us from the wind and separating us from everything around except the iridescent sky.

"A meteor shower," he murmured and I heard true awe and joy in his voice. "A rarity, and a true beauty, to behold."

My senses narrowed to the feeling of him behind me and I struggled to regulate my breathing. A maelstrom of emotions whirled in my gut but at the moment, for the first time since Under the Mountain, I felt peace. I was content; happy, even. I turned my head and I was stunned by the proximity of his perfect face to mine. His eyes were wider than I had ever seen, and softer too. I felt our breaths becoming uneven and I glanced at those sensuous lips.

"Beautiful." He whispered, but this time he looked at me as he said it. He leaned in, slowly, carefully, and stopped when his lips were an inch from my own.

"Beautiful." I echoed, and leaned forwards to brush my mouth against his.

I closed my eyes at that whisper of a kiss… and all around us, as if the world itself were falling apart, stars rained down.


End file.
